Features

Thursday, July 2, 2009

Tatlock quarry and New Road

West of Almonte is the hamlet of Tatlock, where there's massive marble quarry that's really worth a trip on a sunny day. The rock formation is gleaming hill of white crumbly rock that OMYA is gradually stripping away for use as filler in things like paint, plastics, and toothpaste. (See my other post for more information on the geology.)

Access is well marked on the gravel road leaving Tatlock to the west. You'll see a sign to the quarry lookout where the gravel road makes a sharp left turn. In fact, the overlook road used to be the road out to highway 511 until OMYA rerouted it so they could strip off more of the marble formation. The original road passed to the left of the main quarry operation today. Note that as of July 2009, Google Maps showed the original road passing through the quarry, not around the north of the quarry as it is now.

You can probably still drive in a car to the quarry overlook. The road is deteriorating quickly since it's no longer maintained, so beware of deep ruts on the steep sections and blind corners.

If you're heading from the quarry to Highway 511, an interesting sideroute is as follows. Go back to the overlook entrance and continue along the new gravel road (County Rd. 9) as if you're going to 511. About 500m along the road takes a sharp left. Turn off here at the bend and continue straight along Concession 6. It winds along for a kilometre or so, devolving into a rough dirt road. About 2km from the turnoff there's a narrow dirt track up to your left. This is "New Road" and is indicated by a hard-to-spot sign in the trees across from the T intersection. Follow New Road all the way to Highway 511, about 3km. It's twisty, steep, and loose. Not recommended for street tires unless you go slowly. Worth the sidetrip though--it's a really pretty and rugged up there.

Update Aug 25, 2014: The quarry has recently been closed to public access. According to the large sign barricading the road, some people didn't respect the fencing around the viewing area and trespassed into the quarry proper.

Update Nov 22, 2015: Closed again when I visited two weekends ago. Not sure if seasonal or permanent.

2 comments:

Hi Frankenbuffer. We drove to the quarry this morning (Canada Day 2010) since the sign caught our eye while driving from Calabogie to Lanark. The road from the 511 has been repaved and the gravel road to the quarry was in pretty good shape so all was good in our 1997 Miata. The quarry is spectacular. What a pity to use such beautiful rock in such mundane ways.

been there a few times with the kids and my wife.we love it!!The quarry sign was up at the turn in the spring of 2017 but is now down but you can still drive uppeople clearly don't respect the space. Garbage etc can be found around the seats.

About Me

Two-wheel enthusiast in Eastern Ontario. Studied physics and engineering at Waterloo then ended up working in finance after many years in high tech. Used to be a competitive duathlete (cycling, running) on Team Canada and had planned a career as a mountaineering guide. Still have a bug for adventure, and now scratch my curiosity by making things (ranging from sculptural glasswork to mountain biking trails), studying history, and exploring my region. Somehow it all works together and (mostly) keeps me out of trouble.